Colorow (chief)
Colorow was a significant chief among the northwestern Colorado Ute bands, specifically leading the Yampa band, which inhabited the Yampa River area. His leadership became notable following the consolidation of his band with other northern Ute groups at the White River Ute agency near present-day Meeker, Colorado, after 1868. Colorow signed treaties in 1863 and 1868, establishing his influence as a Yampa Ute chief. Despite his prominence, he was not chosen as the main spokesperson for the Ute people during negotiations with the U.S. government, a role that went to the more conciliatory leader, Ouray.
Known for his imposing stature and often aggressive demeanor, Colorow played a pivotal role during a violent confrontation in 1879 when he joined forces with other Ute leaders to ambush U.S. troops entering the Ute reservation. This conflict arose from fears of forced relocation to Indian Territory. Following subsequent military actions and negotiations, Colorow's band faced removal from Colorado but he later aligned with the Uncompahgre Ute band to evade this fate.
Despite efforts to continue traditional practices, including annual hunts in northern Colorado, Colorow's band encountered legal obstacles in 1886, resulting in violent confrontations with state authorities. During one such encounter in 1887, Colorow sustained a wound that would ultimately lead to his death a year later. His legacy remains a complex part of Ute history, reflecting the struggles and resistance of Native American leaders during a tumultuous period.
Colorow (chief)
Category: Chief
Tribal affiliation: Ute
Significance: Colorow was an influential chief among northern Colorado Ute bands and a leader in an attack on U.S. troops in 1879; he clashed with game wardens while leading his band to hunt off the reservation in 1887
Colorow rose to prominence among the isolated northwestern Colorado Ute bands as a chief of the Yampa band, which ranged the Yampa River. After 1868, his band was consolidated with other northern Ute bands as part of the White River Ute agency (White River Utes) near present-day Meeker, Colorado.
Colorow signed as subchief to a treaty in 1863 and as a Yampa Ute chief in 1868. He was one of the prominent Ute leaders who were passed over as spokesman for all Utes when the U.S. government sought a head chief with whom to negotiate and settled on the more conciliatory leader Ouray.
Colorow was known for his large size and often belligerent and threatening manner. In 1879, he joined Captain Jack and Antelope in ambushing U.S. troops under the command of T. T. Thornburgh as they entered the Ute reservation at the request of White River agent Nathan C. Meeker. The Ute bands were fearful that the soldiers were coming to transport them forcibly to Indian Territory in Oklahoma. When, after negotiations with Colorow and Captain Jack, the troops crossed the reservation boundaries anyway, the Utes attacked and besieged them for six days. Meanwhile, other Utes attacked the agency and massacred white workers and took their women captive.
As punishment for the massacre, the U.S. government removed the White River Utes from Colorado and resettled them on the Uintah Reservation in Utah; however, Colorow switched his allegiance to the central Colorado Uncompaghre Ute band to avoid removal. Nevertheless, by 1881, this band had been maneuvered out of Colorado too. On the day the Utes were to begin their exodus into Utah, Colorow led his warriors in a charge against U.S. troops, but they were quickly and ignominiously repulsed by a show of power.
While on the Uintah Reservation, Colorow led his band back into northern Colorado for annual fall hunts, as was provided in their 1873 agreement and never rescinded. In 1886, however, Colorado passed legislation binding all Native Americans to local laws when off reservations; this was interpreted as including game laws, so Colorado game wardens and a posse were waiting for Colorow’s band in 1887. Shots were exchanged and a squaw camp burned with its accumulated hides. The Utes fled back toward Utah, chased by state troops and a local posse. The band was engaged in battle just before the Utah border where at least fifteen Native Americans were killed and a substantial amount of Indian livestock was confiscated. Troops from Fort Duchesne, Utah, eventually arrived and escorted the band home. According to tradition, it was at this battle that Colorow received the wound from which he would die a year later.